U.S. judge says Pentagon’s measures against Anthropic were ’illegal and baseless’

A federal judge has declared the Pentagon's actions against artificial intelligence company Anthropic to be "illegal and baseless." The ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge Rita Lin, states that the government's decision to label Anthropic as a supply chain risk was based on its criticism of the Department of Defense's views on AI rather than any credible evidence of potential harm.

The dispute began in February when President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accused Anthropic of endangering national security, effectively designating the company as a risk in the supply chain. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei remained steadfast in his concerns over the possibility of misuse of the company's technology for mass surveillance or autonomous armed drones.

The judge emphasized that the government's actions were motivated by a desire to publicly reprimand Anthropic for its defiance, rather than due to any valid justification for believing the company would sabotage its models. The White House has not yet commented on the ruling. Lin's 59-page decision further asserts that the Constitution and relevant statutes do not provide the government with the authority to impose sweeping penalties based primarily on Anthropic's dissent.

The case has raised critical questions about the use of AI in warfare and mass surveillance, as well as the balance between government regulation and free speech in the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence. Anthropic has filed a separate legal challenge in the federal appeals court, focusing on a different Pentagon rule aimed at declaring the company a supply chain risk.